


Neko AtsuME

by VigilantePond



Category: Selfie (TV)
Genre: F/M, John Cho - Freeform, Karen Gillan - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-12-14
Updated: 2016-02-05
Packaged: 2018-05-06 16:07:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 1,661
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5423411
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VigilantePond/pseuds/VigilantePond
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Eliza Dooley becomes addicted to a new cell phone game - Neko Atsume, a game of collecting virtual cats. Henry decides to help pull her back into reality.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Kindercare Pharmaceuticals is a hectic workplace, as usual. It bustles with phones ringing, photocopiers _whirr_ ing from the consecutive papers _whoosh_ ing out, and coffee machines bubbling with life. It seems as if nobody gets to have a single calm moment in the office… except maybe Eliza Dooley.

Eliza sits motionless in the same spot, grinning to herself and staring at her cell phone, as she has been doing for the whole hour. Inside Henry Higgs’ office, is peace and quiet, where he can brainstorm brilliant ideas for the company.

Henry explains, “And so, if we change the vitamins from elephants to giraffes, it will appeal to-“

Eliza suddenly lets out a loud squeal, and a deep grin follows, dimples and all. Henry loves seeing Eliza smile, of course, it’s one of the most precious sights in the world… but perhaps not while he is in the middle of an important idea.

“Yes! 140 gold fish!” Eliza exclaims, half jumping out of her seat.

Henry groans. The last time he saw her like this, she hit 50 thousand followers on Instagram. He understood then, or at least tried to empathize, but gold fish? What weird new internet trend was this?, Henry thinks.

“Eliza…?” Henry frowns, mildly in concern.

“Yeah? Should I get the Western remodel, or the Zen? The Zen one is _so_ cute, but literally everybody has that, and I’m not everybody-“ Eliza gushes. Henry still has no idea what his friend is rambling on about.

“ELIZA. Have you been listening to a single word I just said?” he asks in frustration.

 Not looking up from her phone, Eliza half-heartedly replies,” What? Yeah, of course. The uh, giraffes, right? Kim Kardashian posted a selfie with a giraffe, I saw that, I was the third like.”

Henry rises from his seat and walks over to where Eliza sits. He has to see what she is doing on her phone, out of curiosity and partly for his dwindling patience. “Eliza, whatever you’re doing on your phone can wait. You haven’t been paying attention to our conversation.”

Eliza hears the tiniest amount of disappointment and hurt in his voice, and immediately her heart plummets. Even though sometimes it may seem like Eliza does not care about other people, inside she is indeed very compassionate, and she wants to make sure she shows it- especially to Henry. “I’m sorry, Henry. I’m just playing Neko Atsume. “

“Neko Atsume?” Henry repeats.

Her face lights up again, “Look at it! You put out toys and food, then you wait for cats to come to you.”

Henry shakes his head and sighs,” That seems like an application for the crazy cat ladies of the interwebs, and a waste of time.” Surely he admires her a great deal, but most of the time he struggles to relate to her. Although, he wouldn’t have her any other way. He loves how interested she becomes when it comes to things of the internet. He is familiar with the way her eyes light up when someone compliments her selfies, how her nose crinkles in disgust, in the ever-so-cute way when someone uses a bad filter, or how her long fingers fly over the phone keyboard like magic.

Eliza stares at him in the eyes in a very serious way. “Wrong. It’s actually a game which requires a high level of skill. You need to put out the right food, buy the right toys, and attract the rare cats.”

It all sounds too familiar to Henry. “Interesting. That sounds like what we’re trying to do here, is it not? We put out the right products, expend wisely on marketing, and attract the consumers.”

Eliza beams, proud that she and Henry finally sort-of agree on something. “See? I told you I’d be super helpful. After all, I am the top sales.”

Suddenly, there are knocks at the door.  

“Come in!” Henry calls out.

Charlie enters the room. _Of course it’s Charlie_ Henry thinks. _What does he want now_?

“Henry, Sapperstein wants to see you.”

“All right. Eliza, we’ll end here. Thanks, Charlie.”

“See ya!” Eliza hollers, then promptly returns her attention to her virtual cats.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eliza and Henry have lunch

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Pretty short chapter!

The small “lunch room” at Kindercare is quieter than usual. Maybe because Charlie left early for a dentist appointment, and Joan and Linda went out for lunch, or perhaps the reason lies with Eliza Dooley. Normally her chipper voice would be flowing through the room like music from the radio, endless blabbing about the latest internet trends and various celebrity updates. Eliza no longer had to stand by a garbage can to eat lunch, now that she made friends. Today is different, Henry and Eliza sit across from each other on a small round table, but no conversation is made.

“Eliza, are you going to eat that salad?” Henry asks, annoyed. A glass bowl sits in between the two, filled with leafy greens, plump red tomatoes, small chunks of chicken, and sprinkled with parmesan cheese on top. Henry’s own lunch is a burger stacked with layers of juicy beef and crisp vegetables. The pungent smell makes Henry’s mouth water.

Not looking up from her phone, Eliza answers,” Oh, did you want it? You can have it.”

“No thanks, but I am surprised that you didn’t even Instagram your meal. Are you on that cat game again?”

Eliza finally slams her phone on the table and snaps her head up so fast that Henry fears she would break her neck. She knits her perfectly plucked eyebrow together and stares into Henry’s eyes with fury. “Yes, and that little bitch Tubbs just ate all the food again.”

Henry raises an eyebrow. “Who’s Tu-“

Eliza interrupts,” Tubbs is a selfish little prick who eats everybody’s food and if I refill it immediately, he only leaves one silverfish. ONE SILVERFISH, HENRY! One!” Eliza is yelling by the time she finishes her sentence. Larry, who is sitting in the corner, turns his head over and accidentally catches Eliza’s eye. He looks like a nervous mouse who just saw his predator, and immediately returns to eating his plate of pasta- or whatever it is.

“Eliza, calm down. It’s just a game. You need to feed yourself before you worry about feeding those virtual cats,” Henry says.

“It’s not just a game, Henry. This is serious business.” Eliza replies sternly, and carries on in ignoring him.

Henry shakes his head and continues to eat his burger, but for some reason the taste is no longer there.  


	3. 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Henry visits an animal shelter, and something attracts him...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yay i'm updating this again! hello

He thinks that he imagined the soft brush of a snowflake against his face, but as he holds his hand out, it begins to catch more and more snowflakes, all promptly melting in his palm. Christmas decorations are plastered on ever shop window, along with bright lights and seasonal music echoing down the street. Henry strolls downtown, hoping to purchase the perfect gift for Eliza. If you think about it, buying Eliza Dooley a present is not hard. She  would like anything, just give the girl clothes, phone accessories, makeup, and iTunes gift cards… but if you _really_ think about it, it is difficult to give her something truly meaningful.

“Give these animals a home for the holidays! Adopt a pet now!” somebody calls, and it catches Henry’s attention. At the local animal shelter, a group of young volunteers are assembled outside the store and are handing out brochures picturing miserable animals.

Henry lingers in front of the animal shelter’s window, and watches the kittens behind the glass window. They are pouncing; quick, lively, adorable, and energetic, and just needs affection. _Sound familiar_? He enters the store, and get a better look at the kittens. A small, orange kitten in the corner catches his attention. It is not playing with the other cats, but seems to be having a perfectly pleasant time alone with its two-tier cat tree.

“Hi, how may I help you?” a young girl asks. Her name tag reads ALISON. She smiles enthusiastically, and looks at him with eager and sincere eyes.

Henry opens his mouth, but hesitates for a while before making his final decision. He stares at the tiny orange kitten, now rolling a ball of pink yarn around on its own. He never had any pets as a child, he never felt the need to have one before, but maybe this could be a great new experience for him, he thought.

“Are you interested in adopting?” Alison says.

“Yes… Yes, I am. I have decided on that one, the orange one there with the yarn,” he insists, his finger pointing at the cat.

“Oh, that’s great! This is Ginger, she’s a ginger cat,” Alison introduces, then she rolls her eyes and adds, “I know. _Super original_ name.”

She unlocks the space and lifts Ginger into her arms; she is even tinier in perspective, and Henry, who usually does not care too much for cute small animals, felt his heart melt.

“You’ll have to submit an adoption application, and there is a pre-adoption checklist so you understand the impact an animal will have on your household. Then, you can check our website or brochure for the care and behaviour section. There are costs, and additional costs for vaccinations and other health guarantees. Other than that, once you’re done you are all set! Congratulations,” Alison explains.

Henry makes note of everything, and _gingerly_ strokes Ginger for the first time. She is softer than the fluffiest feathers he has ever felt before, and contently purrs upon Henry’s touch. All at once he knows Ginger is the perfect kitten, and he would give her to Eliza as a Christmas gift. This has many benefits; she will stop being addicted to her virtual cat game, and live in reality again, and they can raise the kitten together, strengthening their relationship. Henry smiles at the thought, and looks at Ginger’s round sugar brown cat eyes affectionately, and it seems like she stares back at him in the same way too


End file.
